


Birthday

by paupotter_4869



Series: The Most Important Thing. . . [17]
Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: Birthday, Cooking, F/M, Family Bonding, Family Feels, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gifts, One Shot, birthday surprise, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:20:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28167663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paupotter_4869/pseuds/paupotter_4869
Summary: TLOU-2 showed us the museum flashback for Ellie's birthday, and now I give you: Joel's birthday.
Relationships: Ellie & Joel (The Last of Us), Joel (The Last of Us)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Most Important Thing. . . [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2033674
Kudos: 18





	Birthday

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own anything. All credit to Naughty Dogs. Enjoy !! :)

Joel walked with vigorous strength across the town, head held high. He wasn’t going to lie here, he felt happy and content for the first time in so long.

Some of the neighbors stopped him and congratulated him, which made him believe Tommy had spread the word only to spite him. Joel didn’t really mind, this time around. He had a reason to celebrate. He preferred getting the congratulatory messages, the flowers, and the occasional pat on the shoulder or hug over the pissed off looks from the townsfolk who had too long a memory and held grudges for too damn long.

Despite those few angered glances that were expected, Joel could care less. He knew nothing could bring him down today of all days. It probably wasn’t right, but why should he deny the fact that he was looking forward to this day? Should he pretend to be depressed and gloomy and not show his happiness? He’d been in a dark spot before and he’d had a very harsh time coming out of it, he wasn’t going to put on a mask for anyone’s sakes.

At last, he reached Ellie’s place and knocked on the door. He waited a minute and then tried again, a frown forming between his eyes. Well, he figured then, there was something that could shoot his spirits down the drain—Ellie completely forgetting they had plans today.

 _“Ellie?”_ he yelled then.

He heard a grunt from inside and relaxed a little bit. At the very least, she was home, and alive, maybe—although the sounds were close to those eerie noises the Infected did, too. He insisted a few more times and the scowl was now pretty clear to anyone standing within five miles from her place.

It made him chuckle and he stopped his banging, taking one step back in case he needed to make a run for it.

“What is it?” she yelled upon answering the door. Sleep in her eyes, she was still wearing her PJs, and her hair was a freaking mess. “Please tell me the town’s on fucking fire. That’s the only fucking excuse for—”

“And a happy birthday to me!” Joel interjected her ranting, being aware she was too asleep for jokes just yet.

“Yeah, right. Sorry. Congratulations. How old are you, two hundred and sixty, now?”

“Give or take,” he sighed. “It shall not be disclosed.”

“So… You woke me up not to discuss your age?” she complained, rubbing her eyes.

“I’m here because we agreed you’d spend the whole day with me today,” Joel said, “and your late-night is already screwing my schedule.”

“Oh, we’re on a timeframe now?”

“Remember that you agreed to do whatever I say, when I say it.”

“Right,” scowled Ellie, shaking her head at Joel’s choice of words. A very small smile on her lips upon the sweet, the painful, the blue memories. She still remembered, clear as they, when that was one of Joel’s commands regarding their relationship and awkward acquaintance back in the day. So much had changed since then, so much had happened.

“Repeat it,” Joel insisted, raising his voice too, reenacting that occasion from so long ago.

“What you say, goes,” Ellie accepted in a deep sigh. “This wouldn’t be payback for all I had you doing back on my birthday, is it?”

“Now, why would I do that?”

“Because you love to torture me—case in point,” Ellie remarked, referring to him waking her up at such an early hour.

“Well, the torture will resume at the canteen,” Joel said, knowing better than to bite into Ellie’s teasing and jokes. “Meet me there whenever you’re ready. . . Which will be in a couple of hours, I gather?”

“Screw you and your schedules, Joel!” she yelled, slamming the door closed.

Her outburst made him laugh again, not at all deterred by Ellie’s character—he’d grown used and fond of it a long time ago. Risking losing his hand, he knocked softly on the door again.

“See you at the canteen, then,” he said. He knew she wouldn't bail on him, even if she needed some time to wake up and get ready.

Chuckling under his breath, Joel turned around and saw some people had been witnesses to their strange conversation and were, still, surprised by the funny dynamics between him and Ellie. He could care less what the rest of the town thought, that was how he and Ellie worked, and he wouldn’t change it for the world.

“Morning,” he greeted, bowing his head slightly.

That sent them off on their way and Joel, too, headed towards the other side of town, to the canteen. Tommy was there with his guitar, in the booth furthest from the entrance, and he nodded at Joel from the distance.

The canteen was more crowded than usual at such an early hour; grown-ups used to meet there for breakfast before their chores began, sharing stories and jokes, but today, they were joined by a dozen kids. Running to and fro between the tables and chairs, they were excited as Christmas morning. Maybe even more so, Joel was offering them a real gift, here.

“Joel! You’re late!” Nathan complained, hanging from his arm.

“Can we begin now, please? _Please?”_ begged Juliana, jumping up and down on her booth.

Needless to say, the adults were slightly less enthusiastic about the children’s presence there. For one, it limited the sort of stories—and vocabulary—they would usually entertain themselves with over breakfast. On the other hand, some were already complaining about upcoming headaches.

Joel, however, didn’t belong to either group. He was ecstatic to be here and to share the kids’ enthusiasm. The only piece missing was. . . Ellie.

“We’ll begin in a few minutes,” he said, taking a seat. “There’s someone else we’re waiting for.”

All the children complained about the further delay and Joel found something that could probably distract them for ten or fifteen more minutes. He hoped Ellie wouldn’t take longer than that or they’d be in trouble, unable to distract the kids for a second longer. This was for her as much as it was for him, after all.

“Why don’t you ask Tommy to join us? I’m sure he could play us a song.”

The kids rejoiced at the idea and they all dashed towards Tommy, who was, comprehensively, astonished at being all of a sudden the center of attention.

“Are you sure you know what you’re up against?” Alicia asked, setting a cup of coffee by Joel’s elbow, on the table—he deserved one, today.

“Thanks. Not really,” he confessed, shrugging.

“And you don’t care at all, do you?” Alicia guessed, for Joel hadn’t yet erased that damned smile off his face.

“Not really,” he repeated, nonchalant. “What do I have to fear? You’ll help me, won’t you?”

“Oh, and my being here is your trump card now, is it?” she demanded.

Joel probably had no idea what he was up against. He simply asked Maria to use the canteen for the day and, when word got out, kids begged him to join in. The fact was, Joel couldn’t say no to any of them—he had a soft side after all, as Ellie insisted on pointing out. Luckily, when Alicia and Max got wind of his plans and the number of pupils he’d been planning to teach, they offered to stay in the kitchens and give him a hand. The two of them are as excited as Joel himself.

“Absolutely,” Joel winked at her. “I’d be lost without you.”

There was no time for her to blush at those words; the kids coming back, dragging Tommy with them, interrupted the moment. Tommy sat down across from Joel and all the kids bunched up together on the seats.

“Kids tell me it’s your birthday or something?” Tommy asked.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Joel waved the idea away. “I think they want a song, though.”

“Yes, please!” a dozen voices around the booth begged.

Smiling, unable to say no to a bunch of kids, Tommy picked up his guitar, choosing a song he and Joel knew. As he’d hoped, Joel joined in the singing at the second verse, delighting the young audience even more.

Ellie finally showed up, after they’d sung three or four songs. Sleep in her eyes, at the very least she was wearing appropriate clothes for the cold and had not made the mistake of wearing two left shoes. Upon her entrance, Joel stood and announced they could finally begin the cooking lessons.

Cheers raised all around them, as Lily and Martin ran to meet Ellie and dragged her to the booth. However, the teenage girl didn’t share the younger kids’ enthusiasm and she pierced Joel with her glare.

 _“Cooking lessons?_ You dragged me out of bed and forced me to skip patrol for a fricking cooking lesson? I’m going back to bed.”

“No, you are not,” Joel stopped her. “What was rule number three?”

“Come on, you’ll like this one,” Alicia promised, trying to placate Ellie’s anger. She rested her hands on the girl’s shoulders and pushed her towards the kitchen with everyone else. Still, Ellie looked at Joel, walking by their side.

“Just trust me, kiddo,” he said with a tilted smile.

That finally did the trick and, still weary steps, Ellie allowed herself to be dragged towards the kitchen. There was virtually no scenario on God’s green Earth where Ellie wouldn’t trust Joel to have her back. Whatever awaited Ellie, she was going to like it.

Alicia and Max had helped Joel prepare all the ingredients, so the only thing they needed to worry about was the actual cooking. Bread, cheese, tomato, ham. . . They were going to prepare homemade pizzas. Joel had never made any from scratch before, and it’d been more than two decades since Alicia herself had prepared pizzas, so they weren't too sure about the results, but they were as willing as the kids to try.

Previous experience did not matter at all, in the end. Every last one of them, from Joel to the younger kid, including Ellie, had fun preparing the pizzas and trying out the different recipes and techniques Joel, Alicia, and Max showed them.

With almost fifteen pairs of hands in the kitchen and all the morning ahead of them, albeit only a couple of ovens, the entourage prepared pizzas aplenty—and just in time for lunch, too. They also tried all the possible combinations of cheese and meat and ham available, so the townsfolk had, even, options to choose from.

They were a total success. Pizza was a complete oddity and almost every last townsfolk rushed to the canteen to grab a slice.

However, Ellie didn’t miss the funny atmosphere hanging in the canteen after lunch was over. She spent so much time out on patrol, carefully analyzing anything out of place, any detail that might turn into a possible threat, that she couldn’t have possibly missed the strange, sour looks and conversations amongst the neighbors and friends.

“Are the pizzas bad?” she asked, putting down the slice she’d been about to it.

“Of course not. In fact, you should finish that before anyone steals it from your plate. And, to be clear, by anyone, I meant me. Eat.”

“Then why are they looking at us funny?” she persisted, waving over her shoulder. “The pizzas _are_ bad, aren’t they? Everyone was just pretending.”

“The pizzas aren’t bad,” Joel promised, refilling his glass of water. “It’s not that difficult a recipe, you didn’t mess it up. And they’re not looking at you, specifically.”

“Well, what’s going on, then?” she demanded.

“Some people just can’t move on,” he said. He spoke the next words without looking at Ellie, staring instead at the windowpane to his right, although the scenery in front of him doesn’t help, either. “This day is, too, the anniversary of the outbreak. It all began on a day like today, twenty-six years ago.”

“Oh,” Ellie stuttered.

“Yeah,” Joel agreed, without knowing what else to add to that. Was there anything else to say, really? Sarah, the millions of dead, the miserable life in the quarantine zone, the martial Law, Ellie being immune. . . Was discussing any of that necessary at this point?

Joel really couldn’t blame those people who still talked of the old days and mourned, though. Up until very recently, he acted like that miserable group—he was one of those cantankerous men without a nice word to say and without the strength to celebrate anything at all.

Again, it changed when he met Ellie. So much had.

“Now, finish that,” he ordered. Ellie hurried to oblige and they finished lunch without another word.

Done with lunch, the two of them exited the canteen, surprised to find that the vast majority of neighbors had cleared out already, off to their chores. Ellie stretched her arms over her head and then turned towards Joel.

“What’s next, old man?”

“Thought you’d be sick of me by now,” confessed Joel. Being honest, he truly had nothing planned beyond lunch—he didn’t want to overstep and force Ellie’s hand more than necessary. He wanted to have a good time together and thought making pizzas would accomplish that.

“Not just yet,” she said shrugging.

“Well, then, I free you for the rest of the afternoon,” said Joel. “We’re having dinner with Maria and Tommy tonight.”

That seemed a deal-breaker for the girl. She pouted and rolled her eyes but, perhaps abiding by the rules Joel had clearly stated for her, she didn’t complain. It had been, then, a good idea not to force Ellie into anything else, then, Joe chuckled.

“You’re free to invite any friends you’d like,” he added, hoping it would help her survive the night with the family. That did perk her up, albeit she still tried to shrug it off, and Joel, just to please her, pretended not to notice a thing. He knew who Ellie would like to invite, and she’ll introduce them to him if the right time rose.

“Okay,” she said nonetheless.

“You know, maybe you should take some time for yourself,” Joel pondered. “And practice with your guitar. I’m expecting you to play me a song tonight. Consider it my present.”

“I already got you a present!” Ellie complained.

However touched he is by that careless revelation Ellie should have been able to keep secret until she delivered the gift, Joel would not put his foot down. He missed teaching her chords and songs, he missed playing with her, and he was going to seize the excuse of his birthday for as long as he could.

“Come on, I want to make sure you’ve been practicing,” he said. “And why are you getting yourself so worked up? It’ll be an easy crowd tonight, just family.”

Ellie pouted again and, for a second, Joel feared she would flat-out refuse, her promises be damned.

“Fine,” she scowled in the end. “Then, I’ll see you tonight.”

“We’re meeting at Tommy’s,” Joel said. “And bring _both_ my presents.”


End file.
